The proposed Comparative Medicine and Pathology training program is a five-year program that is designed to provide state-of-the-art research training to veterinarians. Three years of support is requested for two trainees in year one, three trainees in years two through four, and five trainees in year five. It is anticipated that the majority of these individuals will have completed a residency in medicine, surgery, or pathology prior to entering the training program. Selection criteria will include 1) academic credentials and performance during their clinical training/residency; 2) strong interest in research and a desire for a career in academic veterinary medicine; and 3) desirable personal characteristics, including integrity, perseverance, and communications skills. The training program will be located in the College of Veterinary Medicine at the University of Minnesota. Sixteen faculty mentors, all members of the Molecular Veterinary Biosciences (MVB) graduate program, will participate in the training program and represent a diverse group of disciplines, including pharmacology, cell biology, infectious disease, neurobiology, physiology, genetics, molecular biology, and orthopedics. Trainees without a Ph.D. degree will pursue a Ph.D. in the MVB graduate program, a well-organized, multidisciplinary graduate program that was created to focus graduate education efforts by faculty interested in comparative biomedical sciences and molecular mechanisms responsible for human and animal health and disease. The goal of the MVB Graduate Program is to provide students with a sufficient broad based knowledge, quality communication skills, and advanced research training essential for a career as an independent investigator. Trainees who enter the program with a Ph.D. will focus on further developing their research and grant-writing skills.